How spending time with animals can improve your mental health

Have you ever felt happier after spending time with a dog or cat? It turns out, that's not just you - it's been scientifically proven to change the way your brain works, reducing the number of stress hormones and releasing endorphins. To show you the proof, we took a look at animal-assisted therapy study results to show the impact that animal contact can have on the human body and psyche.

Animal-Assisted Therapy (also known as AAT) is a type of therapy where animals are used to help treat the patient. AAT can help patients with conditions like ADHD, autism and other similar disorders, anxiety, depression, behavioral issues, and (which might be surprising to you) physical ailments as well. The effectiveness of AAT depends on the person and animal involved, but it has been proven that spending time with care animals can provide comfort to people with mental health issues or those in medical care.

Below, we dive into the proof as to how animals have helped the physical and mental health of patients, before sharing some tips for how to use this information to promote your own mental well-being.

The many benefits to animals on mental and physical health are backed by research. UCLA Health found that using animals in therapeutic settings can promote feelings of happiness and well-being. This is because interacting with animals can provide oxytocin, which is a hormone associated with bonding, trust, and reduced anxiety.

Therapy animals have also been used to help promote social skills and initiate interactions that help anti-social or anxious patients create connections with others. The Journal of the Society for Psychological Anthropology found that this was particularly helpful for treating children with autism spectrum disorders.

And therapy animals can assist with physical ailments as well. This may surprise you, but it's related to the chemicals like endorphins that animals help us release in our brains. Pain Medicine found that patients who were given time with therapy animals had faster recovery rates from medical treatments, and it lowered the amount of pain that they felt.

To go further on the scientific proof and physical benefits, there are a number of scientific studies that proved this correlation. For instance, the American Journal of Critical Care published a study that showed that heart attack patients needed to only spend 12 minutes with a therapy dog to see better heart and lung performance. They also found that these patients were less anxious, and saw a measurable decrease in stress hormones and blood pressure.

Further results of the study include:

• An average 24% decrease in anxiety scores
• An average decrease in levels of the 'stress hormone' epinephrine of 14.1 picograms/mL, or 17 percent
• An average decrease in the 'pulmonary capillary wedge', a measurement of left atrial pressure, of 2.1 mmHg (10 percent)
• An average decrease in the 'systolic pulmonary artery pressure', a measure of pressure in the lungs, of 5 percent

These studies make it clear that animal-assisted therapy isn't snake oil - it creates real results for the patients that use it. We should hope that this becomes more common practice, as these animals can really make a difference.

Furthermore, this means that an animal can make a difference in your own life. If you are stressed, anxious, or experiencing a mental health disorder, there are many potential benefits to interacting with animals on a regular basis. Obviously, the most straightforward way to do so is to get a pet, but this is not possible or practical for everyone, especially for those with financial or other life insecurity. Instead, here are some other ways to interact with animals regularly:

1. Spend time with a friend's pet. Many people have pets, and hopefully you know someone who does too. Endeavor to spend time with the pet, either simply by joining them in their activities (walking, going to to park, spending time at their house), or by offering to do activities with the pet for them. Often times, dog owner friends will be happy to let you take them to the park and cross that chore off of their own to-do list. Plus, you will form a bond with the dog as they will associate you with a fun activity that they enjoy. You can even pet-sit for your friends who need it when they go out of town to get more extended time with the animal.
2. Volunteer at an animal shelter. Animal shelters have dozens if not hundreds of animals, and most will be excited by the prospect of human interaction. There are many health benefits to volunteering, and these benefits can compound with the benefits you receive from spending time with animals. Animal shelters always have need for people to come and spend time with the animals, so it shouldn't be too difficult to secure a volunteer role. Just make sure that you're going to have the opportunity to spend time with the animals, and not just taking out the trash or other duties.
3. Go to dog parks, cat cafes, or other animal gatherings. There are events and spaces like dog parts or dog meetups that can give you the opportunity to interact with animals as well. When you do so, be sure to bring treats or other goodies to befriend the animals, and also make sure to ask permission from the owner before approaching them. There are also business establishments like cat cafes that are specifically designed to give customers the opportunity to interact with animals in a controlled environment. These are great for people who don't want the commitment of volunteering or the pressure of being responsible for a friend's animal.

When looking for cheap and easy ways to improve your mental health, spending time with animals could be a great solution. You don't have to get a pet - there are many ways to interact with animals that anyone can participate in free of charge. Consider the benefits, and give this a try.